Select a condition Absence seizures Acne ADHD Age-related macular degeneration AIDS Alzheimer's disease AMD Amebic dysentery Anal tears Angina, stable Angina, unstable Ankle sprain Anorexia Anxiety Appendicitis Arthritis Asthma in adults Asthma in children Athlete's foot Atrial fibrillation Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Autism Back pain Bacterial vaginosis Bad breath Bedsores Bedwetting Bell's palsy Benign prostatic hyperplasia Bipolar disorder Bladder infection in women Blood pressure Breast cancer Breast pain Bronchiectasis Bronchiolitis Bronchitis Bulimia Bunions Burning mouth syndrome Burns and scalds Canker sores Cardiac arrest Carpal tunnel syndrome Cataracts Cellulitis and erysipelas Chickenpox Childbirth, heavy bleeding Childbirth, tear or cut Chlamydia Chronic bronchitis Chronic fatigue syndrome Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Chronic prostatitis Chronic tension type headache Cold sores Colic in babies Colon and rectal cancer Colon and rectal cancer screening Colonic diverticular disease Common cold Conjunctivitis Constipation in adults Constipation in children COPD Crib death Deep vein thrombosis Dementia Depression in adults Depression in children Diabetes, type 1 Diabetes, type 2 Diarrhea in adults Diarrhea in children Diverticular disease Ear infection, middle ear Ear infection, outer ear Ear infection with discharge Ear infection with fluid Ear pain during air travel Ear wax Eczema Emphysema Endometriosis Enlarged prostate Epilepsy Episiotomy Erection problems Essential tremor Febrile seizures Fertility problems Fibroids Flu Gallstones Genital herpes Genital warts GERD GERD in children Glaucoma Gonorrhea Gout Group B streptococcus H. pylori infection Halitosis Hay fever Headache, chronic tension type Head lice Heart and circulation problems in diabetes Heart attack Heartburn Heart failure Heavy periods Heel pain Hemorrhoids Hepatitis B Hepatitis C Hernia Herpes, genital Herpes simplex eye infection High blood pressure High blood pressure in pregnancy High cholesterol HIV infection Hyperactivity IBS Incontinence in women Infection in newborn babies Infertility Influenza Insomnia in adults Irritable bowel syndrome Jaundice in newborn babies Jet lag Kidney infection Kidney stones Leg cramps Leg ulcers Lewy body dementia Lung cancer Lyme disease Macular degeneration Malaria prevention Manic depression Mastalgia Measles, mumps and rubella: prevention Melanoma Meniere's disease Meningococcal disease Menopause Migraine in adults Migraine in children MMR prevention Morning sickness Multiple sclerosis Nail infection, fungal Neck pain Nicotine addiction Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Nosebleeds in children Obesity Obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD Oral thrush Osteoarthritis Osteoporosis Ovarian cancer Painful periods Pancreas cancer Panic attacks Parkinson's disease PCOS Pelvic inflammatory disease Perineal care Peripheral arterial disease Peripheral vascular disease Pneumonia Polycystic ovary syndrome Postpartum depression Postpartum hemorrhage Post-traumatic stress disorder Preeclampsia Pregnancy, nausea Premature birth Pressure sores Prostate cancer Prostatitis, chronic Psoriasis PTSD Raynaud's disease Rectal cancer screening Recurrent cystitis Reflux in children Rheumatoid arthritis Scabies Schizophrenia Seasonal allergy Shoulder pain Sickle cell anemia Sickle cell disease SIDS Sinusitis Skin cancer (melanoma) Skin cancer (squamous cell) Sleep apnea Sleep problems in children Slipped disk Smoking Sore throat Stomach ulcers Stress headache Stress incontinence Stroke, emergency care Stroke prevention Sudden infant death syndrome Swimmer's ear Tennis elbow Tension headache Testicular cancer Thrush (oral) Tic douloureux Tinnitus Tonsillitis Toxoplasmosis in pregnancy Trigeminal neuralgia Underactive thyroid Urinary tract infections in children Varicocele Varicose veins Vascular dementia Warts Whiplash Wisdom teeth, impacted Wrinkles Yeast infection, vagina

Select treatment area Bladder & Kidneys Blood Brain & nervous system Cancer Children's health Diabetes Digestive system Ear, nose & throat Eating & weight Eyes Fertility Heart and circulation Hormones Infections Lungs & breathing Men's health Mental health Mouth Muscles & bones Pregnancy & childbirth Sexual health Skin Sleep Staying healthy Travel health Women's health

The good news is that most outer ear infections can be cured quickly.

Most people find the pain is much better after three days. Most people also find that all the symptoms are gone after 10 days if they've had treatment.¹

Usually people with an outer ear infection are treated by their family physician. Your doctor will look into your ear with an otoscope and probably prescribe you some ear drops. They will tell you to come back if the pain gets worse or if you still have symptoms after 10 days.

Your family physician may send you to see a doctor who specializes in treating ear, nose, and throat diseases. This is more likely if you have a bad infection. The specialist is also likely to give you ear drops.

Your doctor might also take a sample of pus from your ear to send to the laboratory. This is to check which type of bacteria is causing the infection. But this will probably happen only if your ear infection does not go away with the ear drops.

Some people get a chronic infection. This means that the infection does not go away completely. If you have a chronic ear infection, the swelling caused by the inflammation may make your ear canal too narrow. This can make it difficult for you to hear.² But it's rare to get long-term hearing problems from an outer ear infection.²

If your infection has become chronic, or if your ear is quite swollen, your doctor may clean out your ear canal and put a "wick" (a piece of gauze or sponge soaked in medication) down your ear canal. This will help the medication get to the bottom of your ear canal, close to your eardrum. You may need to have the wick in your ear for a few days and keep it moist with ear drops.

We don't know what happens to people who don't have treatment. Some outer ear infections go away without treatment, but this can take months.² Most people do have treatment because this makes the pain go away more quickly.³ If you don't have treatment, your infection might become chronic.²

Some people get repeated outer ear infections. We don't know why this happens. But if you swim a lot and have had one ear infection, you are quite likely to have another one.

Most outer ear infections are not serious and can be treated successfully. Ra rely, an outer ear infection can affect the bones in the skull and cause more serious problems. If this happens, it's an emergency and you will be sent to the hospital right away.⁴ Serious infections mainly occur in older people who have diabetes.

There are things you can do to help your ear infection get better and to stop it from coming back.

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment. ©BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2008. All rights reserved.